head to head · open source
mkdocs vs NoteDiscovery
mkdocs has 22,532 GitHub stars, 2,658 forks, 192 open issues and last shipped 1.0 years ago. NoteDiscovery has 2,867 stars, 248 forks, 4 open issues and last shipped yesterday. mkdocs leads on adoption by 686% (22,532 vs 2,867 stars). mkdocs is written in Python under BSD-2-Clause; NoteDiscovery is written in JavaScript under MIT. mkdocs has attracted 12% as many forks as stars, NoteDiscovery 9%. NoteDiscovery was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (markdown), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| mkdocs | NoteDiscovery | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 23K | ★ 2.9K |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | MIT |
| Written in | Python | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2025-10-20 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 2.7K | ⑂ 248 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick mkdocs if
- You weight community size — 23K stars and counting
- You want the BSD-2-Clause license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick NoteDiscovery if
- You want the NoteDiscovery feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and NoteDiscovery fits your workflow better
About mkdocs
MkDocs Project documentation with Markdown [![PyPI Version][pypi v image]][pypi v link] [![Build Status][GHAction image]][GHAction link] [![Coverage Status][codecov image]][codecov link] MkDocs is a fast , simple and downright gorgeous static site generator that's geared towards building project documentation. Documentation source files are written in Markdown, and configured with a single YAML configuration file. It is designed to be easy to use and can be extended with third party themes, plugins, and Markdown extensions. Please see the [Documentation][mkdocs] for an introductory tutorial and a full user…
read the full mkdocs overview →
About NoteDiscovery
NoteDiscovery Your Self Hosted Knowledge Base What is NoteDiscovery? NoteDiscovery is a lightweight, self hosted note taking application that puts you in complete control of your knowledge base. Write, organize, and discover your notes with a beautiful, modern interface—all running on your own server. Write · Find · Discover 🎯 Who is it for? Privacy conscious users who want complete control over their data Developers who prefer markdown and local file storage Knowledge workers building a personal wiki or second brain Teams looking for a self hosted alternative to commercial apps Anyone who values simplicity…
read the full NoteDiscovery overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is mkdocs or NoteDiscovery more popular?
mkdocs has 22,532 GitHub stars and NoteDiscovery has 2,867. mkdocs has the larger community by that measure.
Are mkdocs and NoteDiscovery free?
Both are open source. mkdocs is licensed under BSD-2-Clause and NoteDiscovery under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between mkdocs and NoteDiscovery?
mkdocs is written in Python and NoteDiscovery in JavaScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, mkdocs or NoteDiscovery?
Choose mkdocs if you want the larger community (22,532 stars) or its BSD-2-Clause licence terms. Choose NoteDiscovery if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.